This invention relates generally, as indicated, to non-linear ranging to control a linear ranging measurement device, and, more particularly, to apparatus and method employing a non-linear device to select respective ranges of a linear measurement device to measure signals over a wide range of magnitudes.
As the use of optical signals continues to increase and the speeds of equipment employing optical signals also increase, improved fast and accurate measurement techniques are needed. Optical signal carriers, such as fiber optic cable, and various connecting, switching, amplifying, and detecting devices require testing. As a present example of measuring speed, in some test instruments measurements are made at the rate of ten thousand or more per second.
An example of an optical test instrument, namely, an optical power meter for detecting loss factors in fiber optic communications, is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,825,516.
An example of a device to be tested is that known as the Telecom DWDM system, that relies on deep optical filter components, which often reject at 25 dB to 50 dB and more, clearly a rather wide range. In other optical instruments signal strengths vary over an even wider range, e.g., between approximately xe2x88x927 dB and approximately xe2x88x9245 dB. Validating performance of such devices may be performed using a tunable laser source and an optical power meter. However, conventional test systems, which include an optical power meter and associated measurement instrument, usually are generally linear-ranging instruments, and the range typically changes over three (3) to five (5) ranges, e.g., decades, as signals between 25 dB and 40 dB, for example, are measured. Usually it is desirable for a signal to be measured in the proper range setting of a measurement instrument to obtain the most accurate measurement. For example, usually it is undesirable to measure a small magnitude signal at an upper range of a multiple range measurement instrument because accuracy and resolution would be rather poor; similarly a large magnitude signal would not be measured at a low range because the measurement likely would be off-scale, as is well known. In conventional linear-ranging test systems although accurate measurements can be obtained, the time it takes to determine the correct range and to switch to that range can be a major component of the time required to perform the test and, thus, slows down the overall measurement procedure.
In conventional linear ranging measurement circuitry and in software-based ranging measurement circuitry, usually time is wasted determining the range in which the measurement circuitry should operate to measure signal strength of a given input signal. In a typical case the measurement circuitry measures the input signal using one range, usually that one range is whatever range was used for the last measurement made. The circuitry determines whether the signal is over range, i.e., larger than the measurement circuitry is able to measure while in the present range, and in such case, the ranging mechanism must select a higher range. Similarly, if the measurement demonstrates that the measured signal is below a prescribed level or percent of the signals typically measured in the present range of the measurement circuitry, e.g., below 10% of the largest signals measured at the present range, then a lower range must be selected. After selecting the new range, another measurement is made. If that measurement is in range, the measurement result is acceptable; but if that measurement shows the measured signal is above or below range, as was mentioned before, the range selection step must be repeated until an acceptable range is identified. To make a measurement in a new range, the measurement circuitry must xe2x80x9csettlexe2x80x9d so that the measurement circuitry is set with the newly selected range of measurement capability. Thus, total measurement time is the settling time times the number of range changes required to reach the proper range, plus the measurement time times the number of range changes. Accordingly, it is desirable to expedite the adjustments in measurement circuitry to reduce the time required for selecting range.
Measurements made using linear range measurement instruments are relatively accurate; but, as ranges must be changed, depending on the magnitude (or signal strength) of the measured signal, operation of such instruments may be relatively slow. Accordingly, there is a need to increase the speed of making such measurements.
In making measurements of signals that vary in magnitude over a relatively wide range, non-linear measurement systems, which include non-linear amplifiers, sometimes have been used. An example of a non-linear amplifier is a logarithmic amplifier. A logarithmic amplifier based measurement instrument may be relatively faster than the linear ranging instruments mentioned above, because ranges do not have to be switched, or at least the number of switched ranges is fewer than for a linear ranging measurement instrument. However, logarithmic amplifiers compress the results of the measurement, which leads to a reduction in accuracy of the measurement, especially when measuring relatively smaller signals in the large range over which a signal magnitude or signal strength may vary. Accordingly, there is a need to improve the accuracy of such measurements.
Summarizing, then, linear ranging measurement devices tend to be more sensitive and/or accurate than non-linear measurement devices; and non-linear measurement devices tend to be faster than linear ranging measurement devices. Thus, there is a need for increasing the speed of making measurements while maintaining a high level of sensitivity and accuracy.
Briefly, according to an aspect of the present invention a non-linear amplifier drives linear ranging circuitry in a measurement instrument.
According to another aspect a non-linear ranging device is used to control a linear ranging measurement device.
According to another aspect, a non-linear amplifier circuit and a linear optical power meter are cooperative in response to an input signal such that the non-linear amplifier circuit drives linear ranging circuitry of the optical power meter to set the linear measuring range thereof.
Another aspect relates to quickly and accurately measuring signals of the type wherein the signal strength varies over a wide range.
Another aspect is to provide a wide dynamic range for measurement circuitry.
Another aspect is to measure signals of the type wherein the signal strength may vary over a wide range, for example, say from about xe2x88x927 dB to about xe2x88x9245 dB, wherein accurate measurements can be obtained for small and large signals, and wherein the measurements can be made relatively fast.
Another aspect relates to apparatus for measuring signals over a large range, including measurement circuitry to measure signals, the measurement circuitry having a number of respective ranges, and a range selector, including a non-linear amplifier to select the range of the measurement circuitry based on the magnitude of the signal to be measured.
Another aspect relates to apparatus for measuring signals over a large range, including measurement circuitry to measure signals, the measurement circuitry being substantially linear-ranging and having a number of respective ranges, and a range selector, including a non-linear amplifier to select the range of the measurement circuitry based on the magnitude of the signal to be measured.
Another aspect relates to apparatus for measuring signals over a large range, including measurement circuitry to measure signals, the measurement circuitry having a number of respective ranges, and a range selector, including a logarithmic amplifier to select the range of the measurement circuitry based on the magnitude of the signal to be measured.
Another aspect relates to an optical power meter, including measurement circuitry for measuring electrical signals representative of detected light over a wide range of optical power, including ranging circuitry to determine respective ranges of the optical power measured, and a non-linear selector in parallel with the measurement circuitry to control operation of the ranging circuitry to select the measuring range of the measurement circuitry in response to magnitude of the signal to be measured.
Another aspect relates to a range selector for measurement circuitry useful to measure inputs having a wide range of variation over a number of orders of magnitude, including a non-linear amplifier providing an output in response to an input representative of a signal to be measured, and range selection circuits responsive to the non-linear amplifier to provide range selection signals for use to select operating range of such measurement circuitry.
Another aspect relates to a high speed range selector for optical power measuring apparatus including measurement circuitry having ranging circuitry and operable to measure signals over a number of substantially or relatively linear ranges, characterized in that a non-linear means responsive to the magnitude of the signal to be measured provides an input to determine the range selected by the ranging circuitry.
Another aspect relates to a method of selecting the measuring range of measurement circuitry used to measure an input, including using a non-linear representation of the input to select the measuring range of the measurement circuitry.
Another aspect relates to a method of measuring a signal having a large dynamic range using measurement circuitry having plural ranges, including compressing the dynamic range of the measured signal for measurement by the measurement circuitry operative in a respective range.
Another aspect relates to an optical component spectrum analyzer, including a measuring system for measuring incident light, the measuring system having a number of substantially linear operative ranges representative of optical power of the incident light over which such incident light is measurable, a logarithmic amplifier responsive to a representation of the optical power of the incident light for providing a non-linear output representative of such optical power, and comparator circuitry responsive to such non-linear output for selecting the operative range of the measuring system.
A number of features are described herein with respect to embodiments of the invention; it will be appreciated that features described with respect to a given embodiment also may be employed in connection with other embodiments.
The invention comprises the features described herein, including the description, the annexed drawings, and, if appended, the claims, which set forth in detail certain illustrative embodiments. These embodiments are indicative, however, of but a few of the various ways in which the principles of the invention may be employed.
Although the invention is shown and described with respect to illustrative embodiments, it is evident that equivalents and modifications will occur to those persons skilled in the art upon the reading and understanding hereof. The present invention includes all such equivalents and modifications and is limited only by the scope of the claims if appended hereto.